Side steps are a standard feature on many trucks and sport utility vehicles, such as pickup trucks, vans, delivery trucks, and four wheel drive vehicles. These vehicles are designed with the frame and body having a relatively high clearance from the ground. This higher clearance allows these vehicles to travel adverse road conditions such as deep snow, muddy and rutted roads and other off-road conditions. This higher clearance increases the height of the passenger compartment. To aid in entering the vehicle, side steps have been installed to the undercarriage of the vehicle to provide an intermediate step between the ground and the floor of the vehicle. Typically, side steps are permanently fastened to the vehicle and cannot easily be removed.
Many of these same vehicles are used to transfer cargo from one place to another. Examples of cargo can include ATVs, motorcycles, snowmobiles, jet skis, heavy boxes and the like. Due to the weight of the cargo and the elevation of the floor of the cargo compartment, much cargo must be loaded into or onto the cargo area with loading ramps. The cargo must then be unloaded from the cargo area also using ramps. However, transporting the ramp decreases the effective cargo space of the vehicle. The ramps also increase the weight of the vehicle. Storing the ramps in the back of an open bed pickup truck, for example, may not be practical due to the likelihood of theft.